Monday, March 26, 2012

“IT’S ALWAYS BEEN YOU” is the first novel by Kritika Malhotra. Set during school times, the story starts with a breakup of the protagonist, Maully, with her boyfriend. As expected, Maully is sad and broken, but she decides to move on, with the encouragement of her friends. Very soon, she spots a handsome lad, Keyur, and instantly gets attracted towards him. But, Keyur is in love with Neha, despite their breakup. Keyur requests Maully to pretend to be his girlfriend, for just one day, so that he can make Neha jealous. Maully reluctantly agrees, and they both meet Neha, who comes along with Viraj. Keyur’s plan works, and Neha is jealous to see Keyur and Maully together. Ultimately, Keyur and Neha confess their love for each other, and are together again. Meanwhile, Viraj spots Maully, and gets attracted towards her. One fine day Viraj proposes to Maully, to which she agrees. The story slowly moves forward, coursing through the school practicals, the board exams, IIT preparations, farewell parties, few sex scenes, thus strengthening the love between Maully and Viraj. School ends, and Maully and Viraj take admissions in different colleges. While the lovers get separated, the friends get united, as Keyur takes admission in the same university (Delhi University) in which Maully is. From here, Maully’s attraction towards Keyur and distance from Viraj increases. Finally, a stage comes in Maully’s life when she is in a dilemma to choose between Keyur and Viraj. Now, I leave the details of the climax for the readers. Read the book, and find out.

As a first time writer, Kritika Malhotra has done an okay job. She picked up the concept of “school-college-love-breakup-chiclit”, a tried and tested one, which is already successful with Indian readers, and did fair justice to her story. Maully’s character is well sketched, and few scenes have been written brilliantly. I personally liked the long message (full of slangs) which Maully, in anger and frustration, sends to Viraj, after she finds out something bad about him. It reminded me of Kareena’s dialogue from the movie Jab We Met, but Maully’s dialogue proves far more powerful. The climax of the book is well thought, and well written. As I said earlier, the character of Maully has been sketched very well – her expressions, her thoughts, her feelings, her dilemma, her frustration, and her love are very well expressed. Not to forget, the poems in the book are really good. Lastly, the editing is decent (not flawless though, but still better than many other books).

Now the weak points…

Lack of fresh ideas is damaging Indian readership quality! Every second book, I pick up, is about “college-love-breakup-heartache-chiclit”. Fiction gives writers a freedom – a freedom to explore new ideas, a freedom to write much more than just an everyday-lifestyle-love-breakup chiclit.

Coming to the weak points of this book… The story offers nothing new, and the narration is weak, especially during the first half of the book. There is hardly any spark in the love story of Maully and Viraj, or Maully and Keyur. Unnecessary sex scenes, between the school going couple, may not be liked by all. I maybe sounding orthodox; I am not against the love making scenes. But scenes should justify the situation and romance. Moreover, I don’t know how many would love to read about school practicals, farewells, exams, admissions and ragging. Avid readers may/might/will get bored. I appreciate the writer for using numerous complex words, highlighting her strong control over the language, but what is the use if a layman has to consult a dictionary every now and then? As a writer, we should write for the readers. One more thing, which I want to point out, is the lack of punctuation. Consider the difference:-

“How are you finding NC tattoo girl?”

“How are you finding NC, tattoo girl?”

The comma, after NC, conveys that the question is being asked to someone referred as 'tattoo girl'.

Punctuations play an important role in literature, but most Indian writers tend to skip them.

And lastly, I didn’t expect the writer to use Durjoy Datta’s style of writing. I am hugely disappointed. The ease with which Durjoy writes his love making scenes in his stories is commendable, though I do not support his usage of slangs (f**k, a$$hole) in literature. Modern/ Young writers are just blindly following the trend set up by Bhagat and Datta.

Overall, Kritika Malhotra’s “IT’S ALWAYS BEEN YOU” is sweet, but could have been better. Being a first time writer, she has done a decent job. She has potential. Few scenes are well written, Maully’s character is adorable, poems are good, but everything else is disappointing. I am going with a generous and motivating 3 out of 5 stars for Kritika Malhotra’s “IT’S ALWAYS BEEN YOU”.

You & Me... & our Relationship... is the upcoming book by Nikhil Mukhija.

In Nikhil's own words: -

This book is meant for those dreaming of igniting the spark of love in the Girl or Guy of their dreams; those ‘turtle-ing’ (progressing but slow) around their relationship; those who are confused whether it's the right move, right pace or the right way to proceed and those who are missing the charm in their relationship. Offering an insight into Love, Crush, and Infatuation and with psychology assisting you,This book gives you an insight into how a person perceives love and what causes attraction between a girl and a guy.

NEVERTHELESS YOU BELIEVE YOU DON'T NEED TO OR YOU ARE A STUD OR DAMSEL ON YOUR OWN!

BUT, LOVE IS A VERY DELICATE PHENOMENON & JUST A SLIGHT MISTAKE CAN PROLIFERATE MISINTERPRETATION & MISUNDERSTANDINGS, SO IN ANY CASE there's NO HARM IN TAKING THE PRECAUTIONS AND BEING ACQUAINTED WITH ALL THE DIMENSIONS.

Doesn't matter if you are an Office Going Guy or a 13 Year Old teenager...

Doesn't matter whether you are a male or a female...

In the era where packing matters more than the substance itself...

Neither is it a Fictional Story nor is it a Hypothesis...

It is a theory that will rewrite the script of your love life forever!!!

Enough of ‘be yourself’ cliché, now its time to be, what ‘they’ want you to be.

Saturday, March 24, 2012

“IF IT’S NOT FOREVER” is a
Romance/Fiction novel, penned by best-selling authors Nikita Singh and Durjoy
Datta. It is the story of Deb, a writer cum publisher, whose life takes a
dramatic turn when he miraculously escapes a powerful blast in New Delhi. He
escapes unhurt, but he is emotionally weakened. He realizes that life is too
short, and one should not shy away from confessing his/her true feelings. Still
scarred and haunted by the tragic incident, he visits the blast site and finds
a half-burnt diary – a diary written by someone, with initials RD, who, possibly,
died in the blast. He reads the diary, and realises that they are the unspoken
words of RD, who loved Ragini truly, but ‘somehow’ never mustered enough
courage to convey his feelings. Deb
takes up the responsibility and a journey, to convey the ‘final’ words of RD to
his true love, Ragini. But the road is not easy. The last few pages of the
diary are burnt, and Deb has very limited clues.

Avantika - Deb’s true love, Shrey
– Deb’s best friend, and Tiya – Shrey’s girl friend join him on this journey to
unravel the unsolved and unspoken love story of RD. Their journey takes them to
different cities, as they slowly put together the pieces of RD’s love story.
But, will they be able to solve the mystery of RD’s story? Will they be able to
find Ragini, the true love of RD? Who is RD? Is he really dead? You will get
all the answers, after reading this book. I don’t want to spoil the magic by
revealing the details of the story and the climax.

Now the REVIEW!!!

Nikita Singh
and Durjoy Datta, being the expert writers, have done a fantastic job. The
story is intriguing, right from the word go. The characters of Deb, Avantika,
Shrey and Tiya are beautifully sketched. The writers have done full justice to
the supporting characters like – Piyush, Nivedita, Sumi, RD and Ragini. The
story starts on a strong note, and continues effortlessly till the end. The
scenes, the dialogues, the expressions and the emotions are perfectly
expressed. The language is typical Nikita-Durjoy style, which I generally don’t
prefer. But in this book, the way the characters have been written, few slangs
here and there don’t do any harm. The humor is witty, and will make you smile
and laugh. The emotional scenes are well written, and will make you sad
(weak-hearts may cry). As a reader, you will smile and laugh on Shrey’s and
Deb’s witty dialogues, and the inner pain of Deb and RD will make you sad as
well. Avantika’s character is adorable and Tiya is sweet. My favourite chapter
is the one in which Deb meets Nivedita, RD’s sister.

The only negative, which I felt,
is too much reference about sex, in the first half of the book. It,
momentarily, diverts the reader from the main story line, which otherwise is
very captivating.

In a nut shell, “IF IT’S NOT
FOREVER” is Nikita Singh’s and Durjoy Datta’s best work till date. The story is
strong, the characters are adorable and powerful, and stay with you long
after you have finished reading the book. The book is fast paced, and offers
lot many moments to remember. I am going with 4 out of 5 stars for Nikita
Singh’s and Durjoy Datta’s “IF IT’S NOT FOREVER”.

Saturday, March 17, 2012

“FEW THINGS LEFT UNSAID” is the
first novel by Mr. Sudeep Nagarkar. It is the story of Aditya, who does not
know what he wants in his life. He hates engineering, but ends up taking admission
in an engineering college, just because his parents want him to be an engineer.
His search for his perfect girl ends when he meets Riya, a beautiful girl, and
one of his classmates. One fine day, he proposes to her, to which she agrees.
They bunk classes, go on multiple dates, enjoy their newly found love, and
their bonding strengthens. And then, the “not so” unexpected happens. One of
them starts taking the other for granted, then the regular fights and patch
ups, and finally the BREAK UP!!! I will leave the answer to the question “Will
they be together again?” for the readers.

Well this is the gist of the 231
page story, and as I said earlier, this book conveys very FEW THINGS. The title
of the book promises a lot, and the book has received an overwhelming response (a
National Best Seller and 4+ rating on Flipkart.com). But when I read the “hook”
of the book, I knew what was in my hands. One of the lines, in the hook (back
side of the book), is “FROLOCKING WITH HIS CARRIER”.
I guess, the author meant, “FROLICKING WITH HIS CAREER”. But few mistakes can
happen... few!!!

Let’s begin with some positives.
The last 1/4th part of the book is impressive. As a reader, you tend
to feel sorry for Aditya. The climax, though predictable, is well written, and
there is no ending. In fact, Sudeep Nagarkar has left the scope for the sequel.
So, the readers who have loved this book, this is good news for you. I am sure;
the sequel will be out soon. Few moments, in the love story of Riya and Aditya,
are sweet and adorable. This book will appeal only to love-breakup-heartache
college going “chiclit” lovers. They will not feel disappointed.

Now the negatives... Very very
poorly written and edited book. There are innumerable grammatical and spelling
mistakes. I always blame the editors/publishers for this, but, I think, it is
the responsibility of writers as well to write “somewhat” correct English. The
story, itself, offers nothing new. The same love-breakup-heartache college
story, with repetitive scenes and cheesy dialogues (my Bachcha, my Bachchu, my
Jaan...). The descriptions are poor as
well. Just by saying over and over again, that she was looking beautiful, will
not make the character beautiful. Readers cannot imagine the characters, unless
and until the writers don’t describe them. The ragging scene in which Aditya French-kisses
his class-mate (Nikita), is indigestible and totally unnecessary. First of all,
Nikita raises no objection, in French-kissing a stranger (Aditya), and
secondly, such kind of ragging does not happen in college campuses (anything
can happen in hostels, but in campuses???!!! I doubt!!)

In a nut shell, after reading the
story, I realized that the author had very few things to convey. The entire
story could have been conveyed in less than 230 pages. The scenes are
repetitive, and the reader tends to feel bored. The story offers nothing fresh, and
the HINGLISH dialogues spoil the magic. The unnecessary usage of “F**k” word is
also a letdown.

On the whole, Sudeep Nagarkar’s “FEW
THINGS LEFT UNSAID” is an okay first attempt. The story offers nothing new, for
the readers of good books. Readers, who like college-going chiclits may/will
like this book. The book’s pace is slow, and it offers very few good moments. I
am going with 2 out of 5 stars for Sudeep Nagarkar’s “FEW THINGS LEFT UNSAID”.

Verdict: A National Best Seller... but a Letdown, as the story conveys very FEW THINGS.

Sunday, March 11, 2012

“THE IMMORTALS OF MELUHA” is the first
novel by Amish, and is the first book of Shiva Trilogy. Set in 1900 BC, it’s a
fascinating story of an extraordinary man, Shiva, who eventually turns into a
MAHADEV (God of Gods). Shiva, a man with uncommon gifts, is the tribal leader in
Mount Kailash. But, his destiny takes him to a “near perfect” empire of Meluha,
the land of Suryavanshis. The Suryavanshis are constantly being troubled and
attacked by Chandravanshis. To make the matters worse, the Chandravanshis have
the support of the “Nagas”, the sinister race of deformed human beings with
astonishing martial skills. The only hope for Suryavanshis is Neelkanth, a
Legend, for whom they have been waiting for hundred years. Their hope turns
into the reality, when they find their Neelkanth in Shiva, who promises to be
the saviour of Meluha. Under the expert leadership
of Shiva, the Suryavanshis plan to attack the Chandravanshis. Amid some conspiracies, terrorist attacks and brutal
battles, Shiva finds his soul-mate in Sati, the princess of Meluha. Now it is
up to Shiva to overcome his inner torments, and destroy the “so called” evil.

Well, this is just the gist of a
400 page mythological saga. First thing first, “The Immortals of Meluha” is NOT a
Shivpuran. So those who are expecting to learn about the Lord Shiva, will be
disappointed. Amish has picked up the mythological characters and fascinatingly
blended them into a fictional story. But, what a story it is!!! It’s
MAGNIFICANT!!! It’s 400 page of sheer brilliance. Every scene is so well
written, be it the fearsome battle scenes, or the sweet love story of Sati and
Shiva.

Amish, being the first time
author, has done an outstanding job. Right from imagining the story, the
characters, the events, the places, the descriptions, and blending them with
mythological characters of Shiva, Sati and Daksha, Amish has announced his
strong arrival. Today, when most Indian authors are blindly following the spineless
love-breakup “desi-chiclits”, I truly applaud Amish for his first book.
Scripting your first book, with 400 pages, needs guts and confidence.

Now the few negatives... The
story is set in 1900 BC, but the usage of certain words, like “Dammit, Oh Hell”
should have been avoided. I personally believe, no one would have used such
words 4000 years ago. Secondly, some of the concepts described in this book,
may baffle the readers, e.g. the explanation of the word “Aum”, or the concept
of Saptrishis, the name of certain places (like Rajasthan). But as I said, this is not a Shivpuran, and the readers, who are expecting the “real” mythological Lord Shiva story, will be
disappointed.

To sum up, Amish’s “THE IMMORTALS OF
MELUHA” is a near-perfect book. It will keep you engaged, it will keep you mesmerized, and it will make you chant “Har Har Mahadev”. I am going with 4 out
of 5 stars and two thumbs up for Amish’s “THE IMMORTALS OF MELUHA”.

Verdict: “THE IMMORTALS OF MELUHA” is
ENGAGING and FASCINATING, and contains some DARING IDEAS... This Book should and must be
read by ALL!!! I am right away ordering the next book in the trilogy.

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

“I’M HEARTLESS” is the first
novel by Mr. Vinit K. Bansal. It is the story of Viren, a day dreamer, who
dreams that one day he will definitely find his true love (or Pari, as he fondly
calls her). One fine day, he finally
finds his Pari, when he falls in love with Rashi, who ‘quite unsurprisingly’ treats
him as ‘just a good friend’. He
expresses his strong and true love to Rashi, makes many sacrifices for her, but
she continues to treat him like a normal friend. Amidst all this, Viren ignores
the true love of Manasi, who is Rashi’s best friend. He ridicules Manasi,
ignores her often, but she remains honest and true to him. Viren, instead,
waits endlessly for Rashi, and one fine day, Rashi informs him that she in a relationship with Pratap. Viren is heartbroken, and starts behaving like a
hopeless loser. At this stage, Manasi takes care of him, and ‘quite unsurprisingly’
they become very close. But, Viren is not the same guy any more. He has lost
all his faith over love and relationships. He treats his relationship with Manasi,
very casually. There comes a stage, when he becomes total ignorant, mad,
psycho, and even gets involved with another girl – Neetika. His life takes a
serious turn when Manasi gets to know the truth about him, and his wrong doings.
She leaves him, forever! Years fly by,
and Viren realizes that Manasi was the real “Pari” , who he always ignored, and
also used as per his needs. He realizes his mistakes and sins, and expresses
his “real confessions”, before attempting suicide.

As a first time writer, Vinit K. Bansal
has done a good job, and I really liked the way he has penned the character of
Viren. It looks very real, and many people can easily relate to him. The second
half of the book flows superbly, especially from the scene when Manasi
starts taking care of Viren. The book contains many words that may prompt
readers to consult a dictionary. But, Vinit has used them aptly. There are
certain instances, in other books, where authors have used complex words
without knowing the exact meaning and usage. The climax of the book is very
good, very engrossing, makes you feel sad as well, and is very well written.
Clap Clap Clap!

Enough of Appreciations!!!

The first half of the book, literally, drags. It is slow, very slow in fact, and most of the scenes are not
properly connected to each other. That is the stage, when the reader tends to
lose patience. But, as I said earlier, the story kicks off superbly well post “interval”.

The plot, on the whole, is very predictable; in fact, the
prologue will tell you the gist of the story. There are many editorial
mistakes, for which I will not blame the author. I want to appeal to all the
publishers out here, please take care of editorial mistakes. They make a good
book, look bad! And lastly, the usage of certain words will force a layman to
refer a dictionary every now and then. Usage of complex English words is acceptable,
maybe in descriptions etc. But, I personally believe, we don’t use complex
English words in normal communication. So such words should be avoided, while
writing the dialogues.

On the whole, Vinit K. Bansal’s “I’M
HEARTLESS” is a good (yet, not perfect) book. As this is Vinit’s first book, he
has done a good job. He has potential, and is here to stay. I am going with 3
out of 5 stars for Vinit K. Bansal’s “I’M HEARTLESS”.

Verdict: Read it. Be Patient with
the first half. You will definitely love the second half, because it’s an
HONEST CONFESSION.

Te Amo and 12 HOURS

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Me Myself

About Me

Born in Amritsar, and brought up in NCR, Rohit Sharma is a Project Lead by profession. Though a Gold-Medalist in Engineering,Rohit was not restricted to studies only. He has successfully represented himself and his college at various levels in dancing and sketching competitions. An avid reader, Rohit loves to read fiction, and is a big fan of Nicholas Sparks, Jeffery Archer, Sidney Sheldon, Dan Brown and Paulo Coelho. Apart from being an avid reader, Rohit is loves to write as well. His first book 'Te Amo... I LOVE YOU' was released in December 2012, and is a National Bestseller already. His second book '12 HOURS' has released recently, and is being widely appreciated.